Accurate positioning system using attributes

ABSTRACT

A Position Identification Solution offers a way to determine the position of a Mobile Device by defining a set of known positions and an associated set of objects, shapes, or attributes. A Mobile Device determines its position by scanning an object, shape, or attribute using an included camera, and a Mobile Application running on the Mobile Device recognizes a specific object, shape, or attribute, and determines a corresponding position, which is used to compute the position of the Mobile Device. The Position Identification Solution may use shapes, colors, or combinations of shape and colors. The Position Identification Solution may be used together with other positioning systems in a Hybrid Positioning System to compute the position of the Mobile Device with increased accuracy.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The cellular network is a communication system that interconnectsbillions of Mobile Devices to one another and, in turn, to the Internet.The Internet is a communication system that provides connectivity tobillions of users with laptops, notebooks, desktops, Internet Enabled TVsets, and mobile devices coupled to the Internet either through thecellular network or via other types of wireless connectivity standardssuch as cellular, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, and WiMAX mobile devices. A set ofstandards for cellular phones includes, for example, 1G, 2G, 3G, 4G LTE,4G, and 5G which are used by mobile devices to send and receive data,video or voice. The G stands for Generation and LTE stands for Long-TermEvolution. Cellular, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, and WiMAX standards may be usedin cellular phones, smartphones like the iPhone™, Android™, Windows™,and Blackberry™, tablets, and wearable devices.

In recent years, Mobile Devices have been provided with means todetermine their position at any given time. The terms position andlocation are used interchangeably in this document. Once determined, theposition of a Mobile Device can be used to enable Location-BasedServices, which uses location as the control feature to customize acertain service, and a wide variety of Location-Based MobileApplications. Examples of Location-Based Mobile Applications includenavigation applications, tracking applications, and applications thatprovide content to the user that is related to the current position ofthe Mobile Device (e.g., provide a user using a Mobile Application in acertain store with an offer from that store, or provide a user using aMobile Application in a neighborhood with information on nearbybusinesses and attractions).

FIG. 1A illustrates that the position of a Mobile Device 1-1 can bedetermined as an absolute position or a relative position. FIG. 1A showsthe Mobile Device Absolute Position 1-2, which is a geographic positionexpressed in the geographic coordinates Mobile Device Longitude 1-3 andMobile Device Latitude 1-4. Mobile Device Longitude 1-3 specifies theeast-west position and Mobile Device Latitude 1-4 specifies thenorth-south position of the Mobile Device 1-1 on the Earth's surface.The Mobile Device Longitude 1-3 is expressed as an angle east or westfrom the Prime Meridian, which is the Meridian that passes through theRoyal Observatory, Greenwich. The Mobile Device Latitude 1-4 isexpressed as an angle that ranges from 0° at the Equator to 90° North atthe North Pole and to 90° South at the South Pole.

A relative position is a position relative to a Reference Point. FIG. 1Billustrates a first method to define a relative position of a MobileDevice 1-1 using a Relative Cartesian Coordinate System 1-5. TheRelative Cartesian Coordinate System 1-5 specifies the Mobile DeviceRelative Position 1-12 in a plane by a pair of numerical coordinatesMobile Device Relative X-Coordinate 1-13 and Mobile Device RelativeY-Coordinate 1-14, which are the signed distances from the Mobile Device1-1 to two fixed perpendicular reference lines, one called the X Axis1-10 and one called the Y Axis 1-11. The point where they meet is calledthe origin. By making the origin coincide with the Reference Point 1-6,and making the X Axis 1-10 parallel to the east-west direction (andtherefore the Y axis 1-11 parallel to the north-south direction), theMobile Device Absolute Position 1-2 can be computed from the ReferencePoint Absolute Position 1-7, which is defined by the Reference PointLongitude 1-8 and Reference Point Latitude 1-9, using the Mobile DeviceRelative X-Coordinate 1-13 and the Mobile Device Relative Y-Coordinate1-14.

FIG. 1C illustrates a second method to define a relative position of aMobile Device 1-1 using a Relative Polar Coordinate System 1-15. TheRelative Polar Coordinate System 1-15 specifies the Mobile DeviceRelative Position 1-12 in a plane by a pair of coordinates, a firstcoordinate called Mobile Device Relative Radial Coordinate 1-16, whichis the distance from the Mobile Device 1-1 to the Reference Point 1-6,and a second coordinate called Mobile Device Relative Angular Coordinate1-17, which is the angle of the radius from the Mobile Device 1-1 to theReference Point 1-6 and the X-Axis 1-10. The Mobile Device AbsolutePosition 1-2 can be computed from the Reference Point Absolute Position1-7, which is defined by the Reference Point Longitude 1-8 and ReferencePoint Latitude 1-9, using the Mobile Device Relative Radial Coordinate1-16 and Mobile Device Relative Angular Coordinate 1-17.

All the examples above illustrate ways to define the absolute andrelative positions in a two-dimensional space, but an expert in the artwould know how to extend similar concepts to define the absolute andrelative position of a Mobile Device 1-1 in a three-dimensional space,by adding an altitude for the Mobile Device Absolute Position 1-2, a ZAxis and Z-Coordinate for the Relative Cartesian Coordinate System 1-5,and a second Relative Angular Coordinate for the Relative PolarCoordinate System 1-15.

The absolute or relative position of a Mobile Device can be determinedusing a positioning system. We use the terms positioning system,positioning mechanism, and positioning method interchangeably. Examplesof positioning systems include the Global Positioning System (GPS), theDifferential GPS, the Assisted GPS, several types of Wi-Fi BasedPositioning Systems, and other positioning systems. A positioning systemdetermines the position of a Mobile Device by performing a positioncomputation using a variety of different mechanisms. A positioningsystem determines the position of a Mobile Device with a certainpositioning accuracy, meaning that the position computation contains acertain error, which is introduced by a number of factors that play arole in the computation. The accuracy of a positioning system depends onthe mechanisms that the positioning system uses to perform the positioncomputation and on the position itself. Certain positions can becomputed with lower or higher accuracy than other positions, dependingon a variety of factors. The positioning error means that the actualabsolute or relative position of a Mobile Device is only known with acertain uncertainty. This uncertainty can be thought as a regionsurrounding the actual position of the Mobile Device, and the MobileDevice can be positioned anywhere within that region. Several mechanismsare used to minimize the positioning error. A Location-Based MobileApplication may have certain requirements in terms of the positioningaccuracy that is needed for the Location-Based Mobile Application towork properly. For example, a navigational Mobile Application may workproperly with an accuracy of several meters, while a tracking MobileApplication that needs to determine which exact product in a supermarketaisle a consumer is facing at a given time may work properly only if theaccuracy is about one meter.

FIG. 2A illustrates the Global Positioning System (GPS) 2-1, whichconsists of a plurality of GPS satellites, comprising GPS Satellite 12-2 to GPS Satellite N 2-3. The Global Positioning System (GPS) 2-1 is aspace-based satellite navigation system that provides location and timeinformation in all weather conditions to a Mobile Device 1-1 containinga GPS receiver 2-4 anywhere on the Earth where there is an unobstructedline of sight to four or more GPS satellites. As of December 2012, therewere 32 GPS satellites in the Global Positioning System 2-1. GPSsatellites circle the earth twice a day in a very precise orbit andtransmit signal information to earth. The GPS receiver 2-4 uses themessages it receives from the satellites to determine the transit timeof each message and computes the distance to each satellite. Then, thecomputed distances are used to compute the location of the GPS receiver2-4 using triangulation. The location of the GPS receiver provides theMobile Device Absolute Position 1-2 in terms of the Mobile DeviceLongitude 1-3 and Mobile Device Latitude 1-4. About nine satellites arevisible from many locations on the ground at any one time. Theadditional satellites improve the precision of GPS receiver calculationby providing redundant measurements. However, buildings, vegetation, andother obstructions may make one or more satellites not visible from acertain location. When the GPS receiver 2-4 is first turned on, it needsto find orbit and clock data for the relevant satellites. The procedureof acquiring the signal may take time, even of the order of a minute ormore, before the location can be computed. This time is called Time toFirst Fix, and depends on the location, since obstructions and otherinterferences can make more difficult for the GPS receiver 2-4 toacquire a signal.

The GPS receiver 2-4 computes the Mobile Device Absolute Position 1-2with a certain accuracy. Several errors may be introduced in thecalculation, which affect the precision of the computed location. Forexample, the GPS receiver 2-4 computes the distance to each GPSsatellite in the plurality of GPS Satellites 2-2 to 2-3 by multiplying asignal's travel time by the speed of light. However, the speed of lightis not constant as the signal travels through the ionosphere and thetroposphere, and thus this calculation introduces an error. Otherexamples of errors include the multipath errors, the ephemeris errors,the receiver noise error, and errors in the satellite's clock. The GPSreceiver 2-4 may include means to correct, at least in part, one or moreof these errors. The accuracy of the GPS receiver 2-4 depends on the GPSreceiver 2-4 and on the number and position of GPS satellites visible atany given time from a certain position. The accuracy of the GPScalculation depends therefore on the location and time. On average, mostGPS receivers have an accuracy of a few tens of meters. The accuracy ofthe GPS receiver 2-4 rapidly decreases (and eventually the GPS locationcalculation cannot be performed) if the GPS receiver 2-4 is indoor or ifthere are any other impediments to its line of sight to the satellites.

A first method to improve the accuracy of the GPS is Differential GPS(DGPS), which is also shown in FIG. 2A. DGPS comprises a network offixed, ground-based DGPS Reference Stations, comprising DGPS ReferenceStation 1 2-5 to DGPS Reference Station N 2-6, which broadcast thedifference between the positions indicated by the GPS satellites and theknown fixed positions of each DGPS Reference Station. The differencecorrection signal is broadcast to DGPS-capable GPS receivers usingground-based transmitters to improve the accuracy of the computation. Asecond method to improve the accuracy of GPS is called Wide-AreaAugmentation System (WAAS). WAAS is conceptually similar to DGPS. WAASis a system of 25 ground WAAS Reference Stations positioned across theUnited States that monitor GPS satellite data and create GPS correctionmessages which can be received by WAAS-enabled GPS receivers to improvethe accuracy of the computation. On average, the accuracy ofWAAS-enabled GPS receivers is about 3 meters.

FIG. 2B illustrates a Mobile Device 1-1, such as a cellphone, asmartphone, a tablet, or a wearable device, connected to the CellularNetwork 2-7, which is in turn connected to the Internet 2-8. The MobileDevice 1-1 connects to the Cellular Network 2-7 via a plurality of CellTowers comprising Cell Tower 1 2-9 to Cell Tower N 2-10 via radiosignals. Each Cell Tower in the plurality of Cell Towers 2-9 to 2-10includes a Base Station, which receives and transmits the radio signalsto communicate with the Mobile Device 1-1. Most Mobile Devices such assmartphones and tablets include a GPS receiver 2-4 capable of receivingmessages from the Global Positioning System 2-1 and compute the MobileDevice Absolute Position 1-2.

Most Mobile Devices such as cellphones, smartphones, tablets, and otherdevices that are attached to the Cellular Network 2-7 use AssistedGlobal Positioning System (Assisted GPS) rather than the basic GPSdescribed above to compute the Mobile Device Absolute Position 1-2.Assisted GPS takes advantage of the fact that the Mobile Device 1-1 isattached to the Cellular Network 2-7 to improve the performance of theGPS computation. Each Cell Tower in the plurality of Cell Towers 2-9 to2-10 comprises a GPS receiver that collects GPS information from the GPSSatellites, at the known location of the Cell Tower. Assisted GPS usesan Assisted GPS Server 2-11, which collects the GPS informationcollected by the Cell Towers, processes it, and passes it to the MobileDevice 1-1 through radio signals to assist and improve the GPScomputation of the Mobile Device Absolute Position 1-2. For example, theAssisted GPS Server 2-11 can compute which are the relevant GPSSatellites that a Mobile Device 1-1 attached to a specific Cell Towershould acquire, can generate correction messages on the GPS information,and can use additional information to help determine the Mobile DeviceAbsolute Position 1-2.

Assisted GPS improves the performance of GPS computation in severalways. Assisted GPS improves the Time to First Fix, since the AssistedGPS Server 2-11 can provide the Mobile Device 1-1 with the list ofrelevant GPS Satellites that should be acquired. Part of the GPScomputation can be performed in the Assisted GPS Server 2-11 rather thanin the Mobile Device 1-1, which requires less processing power in theMobile Device 1-1 and saves battery life. The Assisted GPS Server canalso use additional positioning methods to improve the accuracy of theGPS computation in non-optimal locations, such as when the Mobile Device1-1 is indoors or in a location where the line of sight to the GPSSatellites is obstructed. In certain cases, using the Assisted GPS, theMobile Device Absolute Position 1-2 may be computed even in locationswhere there is no line of sight to GPS Satellites, whereby the basic GPSmay not be able to compute the location.

A positioning mechanism that the Assisted GPS Server 2-11 uses toimprove the accuracy of the computation of the Mobile Device AbsolutePosition 1-2 when the location may not be optimal for GPS computation isCell Tower triangulation. In most cases, a Mobile Device 1-1, which isattached to the Cellular Network 2-7 via the plurality of Cell Towerscomprising Cell Tower 1 2-9 to Cell Tower N 2-10, actually communicateswith more than one Cell Tower at any given time. At a given time, aMobile Device 1-1 may be attached to a first Cell Tower 1 2-9 and asecond Cell Tower N 2-10. Each Cell Tower can compute the Mobile DeviceRelative Position 1-12, relative to the Cell Tower itself, for exampleby estimating the distance of the Mobile Device 1-1 from the Cell Towerbased on the travel time of the radio signal through the air, and theangle with which the radio signals from the Mobile Device 1-1 arereceived at the Cell Tower. Typically, the Mobile Device RelativePosition 1-12 relative to a first Cell Tower 1 2-9 computed in this wayis quite inaccurate. However, if the Mobile Device Relative Position1-12 of a Mobile Device 1-1 which is attached to more than one CellTower is computed relative to more than one Cell Tower, then thecomputations can be combined by the Assisted GPS Server 2-11 using CellTower triangulation and the Mobile Device Absolute Position 1-2 can becomputed with better accuracy. This information can in turn be combinedwith the result of GPS computation to further improve the accuracy ofthe computed Mobile Device Absolute Position 1-2.

FIG. 2C illustrates a similar positioning mechanism to Cell Towertriangulation that can be used to compute the Mobile Device AbsolutePosition 1-2 when the Mobile Device 1-1 is attached to the Internet 2-8via Wi-Fi. This positioning mechanism is called Wi-Fi-Based Positioning,and is prevalently used indoors or in confined areas, such as in astadium or a shopping mall. One example of Wi-Fi-based Positioning usesa plurality of Wi-Fi Hotspots comprising Wi-Fi Hotspot 1 2-13 to Wi-FiHotspot N 2-14. The Wi-Fi Hotspots may be connected to a Local AreaNetwork 2-15, which in turn is connected to the Internet 2-8. The MobileDevice 1-1 includes a Wi-Fi radio that can connect to these Wi-FiHotspots. A Wi-Fi Position Server 2-16 computes the distance of theMobile Device 1-1 to each Wi-Fi Hotspot, and computes the Mobile DeviceAbsolute Position 1-2 or the Mobile Device Relative Position 1-12 usingWi-Fi Hotspot triangulation. The accuracy of the position computationdepends on the number of Wi-Fi Hotspots covering a certain location andon the specific computation method used in the Wi-Fi Position Server2-16.

The Assisted GPS using Cell Tower triangulation and the Wi-Fi-BasedPositioning are examples of Hybrid Positioning Systems, illustrated inFIG. 3. A Hybrid Positioning System 3-1 uses more than one positioningmechanism to compute the Mobile Device Absolute Position 1-2. By usingmore than one positioning mechanism, better accuracy in the computationmay be achieved, especially in locations where local conditions may bechallenging for a specific positioning system. The Hybrid PositioningSystem 3-1 may compute a plurality of Position Data comprising a firstPosition Data 1 3-2 and a second Position Data 2 3-3, the first PositionData 1 3-2 computed using a first position computation mechanism and thesecond Position Data 2 3-3 computed using a second position computationmechanism. In the Combine 3-6 step, the Hybrid Positioning System 3-1combines the first Position Data 1 3-2 and the second Position Data 23-3, and in the Compute 3-7 step it computes the Mobile Device AbsolutePosition 1-2. The Hybrid Positioning System 3-1 may use the firstPosition Data 1 3-2 and the second Position Data 2 3-2 in different waysto compute a more accurate Mobile Device Absolute Position 1-2.

In a first example, the Hybrid Positioning System 3-1 uses the pluralityof Position Data as redundant measures, which improves the accuracy ofthe computed Mobile Device Absolute Position 1-2. For example, the firstPosition Data 1 3-2 yields a first estimate of the Mobile DeviceAbsolute Position, together with a first Position Accuracy 3-4; thesecond Position Data 2 3-3 yields a second estimate of the Mobile DeviceAbsolute Position, together with a second Position Accuracy 3-5. Bycombining the first estimate and the second estimate of the MobileDevice Absolute Position, a Mobile Device Absolute Position 1-2 iscomputed with better accuracy. In a second example, the HybridPositioning System 3-1 uses the second Position Data 2 3-3 to calibratethe first Position Data 1 3-2 and increase the Position Accuracy 1 3-4,which is used to compute the Mobile Device Absolute Position 1-2. Forexample, the first Position Data 1 3-2 may be a first estimate of theMobile Device Absolute Position using GPS, with a first PositionAccuracy 1 3-4; the second Position Data 2 3-3 may be a GPS correctionmessage computed by an Assisted GPS Server taking advantage of a knownlocation of a Cell Tower. The second Position Data 2 3-3 is used tocorrect the first Position Data 1 3-2 and compute the Mobile DeviceAbsolute Position 1-2 with increased accuracy. In a third example, theHybrid Positioning System 3-1 uses the first Position Data 1 3-2 tocompute the Mobile Device Absolute Position 1-2 in certain conditionsand the second Position Data 2 3-3 to compute the Mobile Device AbsolutePosition 1-2 in other conditions. For example, the first Position Data 13-2 may be an estimate of the Mobile Device Absolute Position using GPS,which is used to compute the Mobile Device Absolute Position 1-2 whenthe Mobile Device 1-1 is outdoor and without obstructions on the line ofsight to the GPS satellites, which are the conditions in which GPSmeasurements are most accurate. The second Position Data 2 3-3 may be anestimate of the Mobile Device Absolute Position using Cell Tower orWi-Fi triangulation, which is used to compute the Mobile Device AbsolutePosition 1-2 when the Mobile Device 1-1 is indoor or in conditions wherethe GPS measurement is inaccurate or not even possible.

A Mobile Device 1-1 such as a cellphone, a smartphone, a tablet, or awearable device is illustrated in FIG. 4. The Mobile Device 1-1 consistsof Hardware 4-1 and Software 4-2. The Hardware 4-1 comprises at leastone Processor 4-3 and at least one Memory 4-4. The Hardware 4-1 alsoprovides the user of the Mobile Device 1-1 with at least one mode ofinput and one mode of output. A first mode of input may consist of aKeypad 4-4, a first mode of output consist of a Screen 4-5. The Screen4-5 may be a touch-sensitive screen, which provides a second mode ofinput. Other modes of input and output, such as voice recognition, mayalso be provided (not shown). The Hardware 4-1 may also include a Camera4-6, with which the user can take photos or videos using the MobileDevice 1-1. The Hardware 4-1 also provides Communication Links 4-7. Afirst communication link in the Communication Links 4-7 is a CellularRadio 4-11, which includes a transmitter and a receiver, which connectsthe Mobile Device 1-1 to the Cellular Network 2-12. The CommunicationLinks 4-7 may also include a Wi-Fi Radio 4-10, which includes atransmitter and a receiver, and enables the Mobile Device 1-1 to connectto a Wi-Fi Hotspot. The Communication Links 4-7 may also include a GPSReceiver 2-4 capable of receiving GPS signals from GPS Satellites. Ifthe GPS Receiver 2-4 is present, the Mobile Device 1-1 is capable ofcomputing its position using GPS. The Communication Links 4-7 may alsoinclude an Assisted GPS Receiver 4-8, capable of receiving informationfrom an Assisted GPS Server 2-11 connected to the Cellular Network or tothe Internet 2-8. If the Assisted GPS Receiver 4-8 is present, theMobile Device 1-1 is capable of computing its position using AssistedGPS. The Software 4-2 comprises an Operating System 4-12 and a pluralityof Mobile Applications comprising Mobile Application 1 4-13, MobileApplication 2 4-14, to Mobile Application N 4-15. Each MobileApplication in the plurality of Mobile Applications may provide specificfunctionality to the Mobile Device 1-1. One or more Mobile Applicationsrunning on the Mobile Device 1-1 may provide ways to compute the MobileDevice Absolute Position 1-2 or the Mobile Device Relative Location 1-12using different positioning mechanisms, including Hybrid PositioningSystem. One or more Mobile Applications running on the Mobile Device 1-1may be Location-Based Mobile Applications and use the computed MobileDevice Absolute Position 1-2 or the Mobile Device Relative Position 1-12in order to customize their functionality depending on the computedMobile Device location.

BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

An embodiment of the one of the current inventions uses a plurality ofKnown Positions that are defined in the area where the accurate positionneeds to be computed. A first Known Position in the plurality of KnownPositions can be defined as an Absolute Position in terms of Latitudeand Longitude or as a Relative Position in relation to a ReferencePoint. When inside a store, a Relative Position is often preferred,since convenient Reference Points are often available, and the distanceof any position inside the building from such Reference Points is ofteneasily measurable. A first example of a convenient Reference Point thatcan be used in a store may be the front door. A second example of aconvenient Reference Point that can be used in a store may be a specificcorner of the store. A third example of a convenient Reference Point maybe the position of a specific cash register. The known position iscomputed in relation to the position of the shape. The camera may berather close to the position of the shape, since the camera was able totake an image of the shape. However, an error in position of theportable device can occur with respect to the position of the shape.Where all this makes sense is indoors since GPS may not accurate enoughto compute the position of the user when the user is next to a positionof a shape while the position computed in relation to the position ofthe shape provides a more accurate position of the user.

In accordance with another embodiment of the one of the currentinventions the Mobile Device includes a Camera that can be used to takean image of the shapes placed with respect to a Reference Point. TheMobile Device also includes a Scanning and Image Recognition MobileApplication, which is capable of controlling the Camera in order to takean image of a shape and includes Image Recognition software capable ofrecognizing which shape is portrayed in a certain image. For thispurpose, the Scanning and Image Recognition Mobile Application comparesthe shape captured in the image taken by the Camera with shapes in theShape Database and identifies a specific shape. Then, using theShape-Position Database, it associates the identified shape with a KnownPosition in the plurality of Known Positions. It then determines theposition of the Mobile Device as the identified Known Position. TheMobile Device also includes an Assisted GPS Receiver, a GPS Receiver, aWi-Fi Radio, and a Cellular Radio, and may be capable to determine itsposition using other positioning systems such as Assisted GPS orWi-Fi-Based Positioning.

In accordance with another embodiment of the one of the currentinventions a plurality of Known Positions are defined in the area wherethe Mobile Device position needs to be determined. The plurality ofKnown Positions includes a plurality of shapes placed at the polarity ofKnown Positions. The Shape Database in the Mobile Device is loaded withinformation describing all the shapes associated with all positions. TheShape-Position Database in the Mobile Device is loaded with informationdescribing the association of each shape with a known position. TheMobile Device captures an image of a shape using the Camera. TheScanning and Image Recognition Mobile Application processes the imageand associates it with one of the entries in the Shape Database,defining which shape has been captured by the camera. Then, the knownposition associated with the recognized shape is determined from thecorresponding entry in the Shape-Position Database. The position of theMobile Device is computed as the determined position.

In accordance with another embodiment of the one of the currentinventions includes the operation of the Position IdentificationSolution, which uses a Mobile Device including a Scanning and ImageRecognition Mobile Application running on an Operating System, a Camera,and a Shape Database. The Mobile Device sends data to and receives datafrom the Wireless Network, which in turn sends data to and receives datafrom/to the internet. A Positioning Server sends data to and receivesdata from the Internet. The Mobile Device sends data to and receivesdata from the Positioning Server. The Positioning Server includes aShape-Position Database containing a plurality of Shape-Positionentries. For each position and each associated shape, there is acorresponding entry in the Shape-Position Database. The Scanning andImage Recognition Mobile Application takes an image of a shape anddetermines which one of the shapes it possesses. The Mobile Device sendsthe information of the shape to the Positioning Server. The PositioningServer uses the received information to identify the corresponding entryin the Shape-Position Database and derive an associated position. Then,the Positioning Server determines the position of the Mobile Device asequal to the derived associated position of the captured shape.

In accordance with another embodiment of the one of the currentinventions includes using colors instead of shapes and associates acolor with each position in the plurality of positions. A plurality ofColors is associated with a plurality of Known Positions wherever theMobile Device position needs to be determined. The Color Database in theMobile Device is loaded with information describing all the colorsassociated with all positions and provides an association of each colorwith each known position and is loaded in the Color-Position Database inthe Mobile Device. The Mobile Device captures an image of a color usingthe Camera. The software in the Scanning and Image Recognition MobileApplication runs on an Operating System and processes the image andassociates it with one of the entries in the Color Database, definingwhich position has been captured by the camera. The known positionassociated with the recognized color is determined from thecorresponding entry in the Color-Position Database. The position of theMobile Device is computed as the determined position.

In accordance with another embodiment of the one of the currentinventions the combinations of shapes and colors are associated witheach known position in the plurality of Known Positions. For example,the Position Identification Solution associates a first shape of a firstcolor with a first known position in the plurality of Known Positions, afirst shape of a second color with a second known position in theplurality of Known Positions, a second shape of a first color with athird known position in the plurality of Known Positions, etc. In thisembodiment of the one of the current inventions, the Scanning an ImageRecognition Mobile Application is capable of recognizing a specificshape of a specific color in the plurality of shape and colorcombinations that are associated with the known positions in theplurality of Known Position. Once the shape and color combination isrecognized, the position of the Mobile Device is determined as equal tothe known position associated with the recognized shape and colorcombination.

In accordance with another embodiment of the one of the currentinventions which is used together with other positioning mechanisms aspart of a Hybrid Positioning System. The current embodiment of theinvention can be used as part of a Hybrid Positioning System indifferent ways. A first way the current embodiment of the invention canbe used as part of a Hybrid Positioning System is by using the currentembodiment of the invention to determine a known position and use such adetermined position to calibrate a position computed using a secondpositioning system, such as Assisted GPS or Wi-Fi-Based Positioning fromthe same position. The Mobile Device includes a Camera and a ScanningImage Recognition Mobile Application running on an Operating System. TheScanning Image Recognition Mobile Application includes software that iscapable of recognizing at least one of a shape, a color, or shape-colorcombination using a Shape Database, a Shape-Position Database, a ColorDatabase, or a Color-Position Database. The Mobile Device also includesa Cellular Radio that sends and receives data to and from the WirelessNetwork, which is in turn sends and receives data to and from theInternet. The Mobile Device also includes at least one of a GPSReceiver, an Assisted GPS Receiver, and a Wi-Fi Radio. If the MobileDevice includes a GPS Receiver, the Mobile Device receives the data fromthe GPS and is capable of computing its position using the GPS data, ifthe Mobile Device includes an Assisted GPS Receiver, the Mobile Devicereceives the data from the Assisted GPS and is capable of computing itsposition using the data from the Assisted GPS, and if the Mobile Deviceincludes a Wi-Fi Radio, the Mobile Device receives the data from theWi-Fi Radio and is capable of computing its position using the data fromthe Wi-Fi-Based Positioning Systems. The Mobile Device may also includecapabilities of computing its position using data received from otherpositioning systems. A Hybrid Positioning System Server can be attachedto the Internet.

An embodiment of the one of the present inventions is a mobile devicecoupled to a position identification system comprising: an operatingsystem coupled to a camera; a scanning and image recognition unitcoupled to the operating system; an attribute database coupled to thescanning and image recognition unit; an attribute-position databasecoupled to the scanning and image recognition unit; each of a pluralityof descriptions in the attribute database describing a correspondingattribute; and each entry in the attribute-position database associatingan attribute with a corresponding position, wherein an image obtained bythe camera containing a first attribute is coupled to the scanning andimage recognition unit which matches the description of the firstattribute to one of the plurality of descriptions in the attributedatabase, wherein the matched description of one of the plurality ofdescriptions is entered to the attribute-position database to find aposition of the first attribute, further comprising: a wireless networkcoupled to either a hybrid positioning system server or an Internet,wherein the mobile device receives data from and sends data to thewireless network, and the data comprises the description of theattributes, the corresponding positions or both. The mobile devicewherein the scanning and image recognition unit comprises a mobileapplication, wherein another position determined by a second positioningsystem is enhanced by the position, wherein a device position of themobile device is defined as equivalent to the position, wherein theattribute database contains descriptions of orientations, objects,shapes, colors, shades, sounds, amplitude, frequencies or anycombination therein, wherein the descriptions of the attribute databasecorresponds to a plurality of descriptions of attributes which is eachstored with a known position in a corresponding entry in theattribute-position database.

Another embodiment of the one of the present inventions is a positionidentification unit apparatus comprising: a mobile device having anoperating system coupled to a camera; a scanning and image recognitionunit coupled to the operating system, wherein the scanning and imagerecognition unit receives an image from the camera; an attributedatabase with a plurality of first descriptions describing eachattribute; at least one server with an attribute-position databaseassociating a description of each attribute with a known position; thescanning and image recognition unit extracts a description of an unknownattribute within the image and couples the description to the attributedatabase matching one of the plurality of first descriptions to providea description of a known attribute; an internet coupling a cellularnetwork to the at least one server; wherein the description of the knownattribute is sent to the server and is matched with the description ofone of the attributes in the attribute-position database to provide aknown position; wherein the mobile device receives the known position ofthe attribute from the server. The apparatus wherein a device positionof the mobile device defined as equivalent to the known position,further comprising: a second position determined by a second positioningsystem enhanced by the known position, wherein the descriptions of theattribute database corresponds to a plurality of descriptions ofattributes which is each stored with a position in a corresponding entryin the attribute-position database, wherein the attribute databasecontains descriptions of orientations, objects, shapes, colors, shades,sounds, amplitude, frequencies or any combination therein, wherein thescanning and image recognition unit comprises a mobile application.

Another embodiment of the one of the present inventions is a method ofdetermining a position of an attribute comprising the steps of: takingan image containing an attribute with a camera of a mobile device;receiving data from an attribute database and an attribute-positiondatabase in a mobile device; storing the data into the mobile deviceinto a stored attribute database and a corresponding storedattribute-position database, respectively; recognizing a description ofthe attribute in the image taken by the camera using a scanning andimage recognition unit; matching the description of the attribute to adescription of a stored attribute in the stored attribute database; andassociating the description of the stored attribute in the storedattribute-position database to a position. The process furthercomprising the steps of: locating a description of another attribute ina different image taken in a different position; matching thedescription of another attribute to a description of correspondingattribute in the stored attribute database; and associating thedescription of the corresponding attribute in the storedattribute-position database to another position, further comprising thesteps of: coupling a wireless network to either a hybrid positioningsystem server or an Internet, wherein the mobile device receives datafrom and sends data to the wireless network. The process wherein asystem position determined by a second positioning system is enhanced byeither the position or the another position, wherein a device positionof the mobile device defined as equivalent to the position, wherein theattribute database contains descriptions of orientations, objects,shapes, colors, shades, sounds, amplitude, frequencies or anycombination therein, wherein the descriptions of the attribute databasecorresponds to a plurality of descriptions of attributes which is eachstored with a known position in a corresponding entry in theattribute-position database.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Please note that the drawings shown in this specification may notnecessarily be drawn to scale and the relative dimensions of variouselements in the diagrams are depicted schematically. The inventionspresented here can be embodied in many different forms and should not beconstrued as limited to the embodiments set forth herein. Rather, theseembodiments are provided so that this disclosure will be thorough andcomplete, and will fully convey the scope of the invention to thoseskilled in the art. In other instances, well-known structures andfunctions have not been shown or described in detail to avoidunnecessarily obscuring the description of the embodiment of any of theinventions. Like numbers refer to like elements in the diagrams.

FIG. 1A depicts a Mobile Device and its Mobile Device Absolute Positionexpressed by a Mobile Device Longitude and a Mobile Device Latitude.

FIG. 1B depicts a Mobile Device and its Mobile Device Relative Positionrelative to a Reference Point, expressed in a Relative CartesianCoordinate System.

FIG. 1C depicts a Mobile Device and its Mobile Device Relative Positionrelative to a Reference Point, expressed in a Relative Polar CoordinateSystem.

FIG. 2A describes the Global Positioning System (GPS), the DifferentialGPS, and a Mobile Device with a GPS Receiver capable of computing aMobile Device Absolute position.

FIG. 2B describes the Assisted GPS and a Mobile Device capable ofcomputing a Mobile Device Absolute position using Assisted GPS and CellTower triangulation.

FIG. 2C depicts a Mobile Device and a Wi-Fi-Based Positioning systemusing Wi-Fi Hotspot triangulation.

FIG. 3 illustrates the way a Hybrid Positioning System operates in orderto compute a Mobile Device Absolute Position.

FIG. 4 illustrates a Mobile Device including capabilities to compute itsposition using different positioning mechanisms.

FIG. 5 illustrates an Object, Shape, Color, Sound or other Attributeassociated with a Known Position, and how it is used to determine theposition of a Mobile Device in accordance with an embodiment of the oneof the present inventions.

FIG. 6 shows a Mobile Device including a Mobile Application, twoDatabases, and a Camera in accordance with an embodiment of the one ofthe present inventions.

FIG. 7 illustrates the operation of the Position Identification Solutionto compute the position of a Mobile Device using shapes in accordancewith an embodiment of the one of the present inventions.

FIG. 8 shows the operation of the Position Identification Solution tocompute the position of a Mobile Device using shapes and a PositioningServer in accordance with an embodiment of the one of the presentinventions.

FIG. 9 illustrates the operation of the Position Identification Solutionto compute the position of a Mobile Device using colors in accordancewith an embodiment of the one of the present inventions.

FIG. 10 depicts the Position Identification Solution as part of a HybridPositioning System to compute the position of a Mobile Device inaccordance with an embodiment of the one of the present inventions.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

Mobile Devices such as cellular phones, smartphones, and tabletstypically include means to determine their position at any given timeusing different positioning systems, such as GPS, Assisted GPS, CellTower triangulation, and Wi-Fi-Based Positioning. The accuracy of eachpositioning system depends on the position of the Mobile Device at thetime a position is computed. For example, the GPS positioning system haspoor accuracy when the Mobile Device is indoor or when obstructionsprevent a clear line of sight with the GPS Satellites.

The capability of a Mobile Device to determine its position is requiredin order to enable Location-Based Services and Location-Based MobileApplications. Location-Based Mobile Applications such as navigation andtracking applications are becoming very popular on Mobile Devices. Theuser experience of Location-Based Mobile Applications depends on theaccuracy of the computed position of the Mobile Device. The accuracy ofpositioning systems such as Assisted GPS is in general sufficient to beused by Location-Based Mobile Applications such as navigation andtracking applications when the Mobile Device is outdoors and in mostlocations.

There are Location-Based Mobile Applications which require a very highaccuracy of the computed position in order to operate. Furthermore, someof such applications require a very high accuracy of the computedposition even when the Mobile Device is indoors. For example, aLocation-Based Mobile Application that displays an offer of a certainproduct to a consumer when that consumer is in front of the shelf in asupermarket where the product is located requires the Location-BasedMobile Application to compute the position of the Mobile Device of thatconsumer with sufficient accuracy to determine in which aisle in thesupermarket the consumer is, and his or her exact position within theaisle. Typically, such a high degree of accuracy may not be achievableby using Assisted GPS, especially in the case where the position needsto be determined indoor, as in the supermarket example.

To enable this kind of Location-Based Mobile Applications requiring veryhigh positioning accuracy, various positioning systems other thanAssisted GPS have been designed. They may be used together with AssistedGPS or other positioning systems in Hybrid Positioning Systems. A firstexample of such a positioning system is the Wi-Fi-Based PositioningSystem illustrated in FIG. 2C. Certain Wi-Fi-Based Positioning Systemsare capable of achieving high accuracy even indoor. However, theyrequire the installation of multiple Wi-Fi Hotspots covering the area,such as a store, where high accuracy is desired, which may be difficult,costly, or even impractical. They also require very accurate calibrationin order to operate properly, which may also be difficult and costly. Asecond example of positioning system capable of high accuracy indoor isa Positioning System using LED lighting and triangulation based on theknown position of the LED lighting fixtures. This type of PositioningSystem requires the installation of special LED lighting and calibrationthat may also be difficult and costly in a store. It also requiresdirect line of sight with the Mobile Device, which may be impracticalsince the user may keep the Mobile Device in his or her pocket while inthe store. In general, positioning systems capable of very high accuracymay have drawbacks, such as they may require installation of dedicatedequipment, require calibration procedures, or require special handlingof the Mobile Device in order to determine its position. Differentpositioning systems may have different drawbacks, and thus a firstpositioning system may be adequate to be used in a first location, butmay not be in a second location, and a second positioning system may beadequate to be used in a second location but may not be in a thirdlocation, and so on.

Thus, there is a need for additional positioning systems that arecapable of determining the position of a Mobile Device with highaccuracy, even indoor, which is one of the objectives of the presentinvention.

Another of the objectives of the present invention to provide a PositionIdentification Solution capable of determining the position of a MobileDevice at a given time with high accuracy. The Position IdentificationSolution determines the position of the Mobile Device when the MobileDevice is either outdoor or indoor with the same accuracy. The PositionIdentification Solution may not require the installation of specialequipment in the location where the position needs to be determined. ThePosition Identification Solution may be combined with other positioningmechanisms in a Hybrid Positioning System.

The operation of one of the current inventions is first shown in FIG. 5.A plurality of Known Positions 5-3 comprising Known Position 1 5-1,Known Position 2 5-5, to Known Position N 5-6, are defined in the areawhere the accurate position needs to be computed. For example, if thearea where the accurate position needs to be computed is a large store,the plurality of Known Positions 5-3 contains Known Positions within thestore. A first Known Position 1 5-1 in the plurality of Known Positions5-3 can be defined as an Absolute Position in terms of a Latitude and aLongitude or as a Relative Position in relation to a Reference Point.When indoor, for example inside a store, a Relative Position is oftenpreferred, since convenient Reference Points are often available, andthe distance of any position inside the building from such ReferencePoints is often easily measurable. A first example of a convenientReference Point that can be used in a store may be the front door, ormore precisely the left/right side of the front door. A second exampleof a convenient Reference Point that can be used in a store may be aspecific corner of the store. A third example of a convenient ReferencePoint may be the position of a specific cash register.

The position of the camera, which is the position of the mobile device,is computed in relation to the position of the attribute. The camera maybe rather close to the position of the attribute, since the camera wasable to take an image of the attribute. The device position of thecamera in the mobile device is different than the calculated position ofthe attribute. However, because the difference in these positions aresmall (the camera needs to be close enough to the attribute to obtain animage) and there is an error in calculating the attribute positionequivalent to the distance between the device and attribute, the deviceposition of the mobile device is defined as being equivalent to theknown position. By adjusting the characteristics of the camera, thiserror can be controlled, if so desired. For example, a camera withcharacteristics that only allow it to focus at close range forces theuser to get very close to the attribute in order to take a picture ofthe attribute. Despite this error, the current invention may provide amore accurate position than other positioning systems. For example,indoors the GPS may not accurate enough to compute the position of thedevice since the metallic frame of the building surrounding theattributes may not allow the GPS signal to reliability penetrate thebuilding. In this case the GPS position can be enhanced by thecalculated position of the attribute. The device which is next to acalculated position of an attribute uses the position of the attributeas the position of the device thereby providing a more accurate positionof the user holding the mobile device.

A first Object, Shape, Color, Sound or other Attribute 5-2 is associatedwith the first Known Position 1 5-1 and placed at the first KnownPosition 1 5-1 or at a known relation with the first Known Position 15-1. An attribute is any characteristic that can distinguish a shape,sound from another. An attribute is anything that can identify objectsor shapes, objects or shapes in various orientations, colors in variousshades, or sounds having various amplitudes and frequencies;furthermore, each component in the sets of objects, shapes, colors, orsounds are different from each other in each given set. A second Object,Shape, or Attribute, different from the first Object, Shape, Color,Sound or other Attribute 5-2 is associated with the second KnownPosition 2 5-5. A different Object. Shape, Color, Sound or otherAttribute is associated with each Known Position in the plurality ofKnown Positions 5-3 and placed at the corresponding Known Position inthe plurality of Known Positions 5-3 or at a known relation with thecorresponding Known Position in the plurality of Known Positions 5-3.

Once all the Objects, Shapes, or Attributes are placed at thecorresponding Known Positions or at a known relation with thecorresponding Known Positions, the current invention operates as followsin order to determine the position of a Mobile Device 1-1. First, theMobile Device captures a digital image of an Object, Shape, Color, Soundor other Attribute using the Camera 5-7 in the mobile device. The imageis focused by the lens of the camera and projected onto a lightsensitive object. The light sensitive object can be fabricated in eitherof the technologies of Complementary Metal Oxide Semiconductor (CMOS)camera or Charge Coupled Device (CCD). Then, the image is scanned andprocessed by a scanning and image recognition unit. If a Object, Shape,Color, Sound or other Attribute Is Recognized 5-8, then the AssociatedPosition to Recognized Object, Shape, Color, Sound or other Attribute isIdentified 5-9. Finally, the Mobile Device Position Is Determined 5-10once the Known Position in the plurality of Known Positions 5-3associated with the recognized Object, Shape, Color, Sound or otherAttribute is determined. If the Object, Shape, Color, Sound or otherAttribute is placed at a known relation with the associated KnownPosition, a corresponding adjustment is made to the determined theMobile Device Position.

One of the current inventions has different embodiments, depending onthe type of Object, Shape, Color, Sound or other Attribute that isassociated with each Known Position in the plurality of Known Positions5-3.

A first embodiment of one of the inventions uses shapes associated witheach Known Position in the plurality of Known Positions 5-3. A MobileDevice 1-1 capable of determining the position of the Mobile Device 1-1in accordance with this first embodiment of the current invention isshown in FIG. 6. The Mobile Device 1-1 includes a Camera 4-6 that can beused to take an image of the shapes. The Mobile Device 1-1 also includesa Scanning and Image Recognition Mobile Application 6-1, which iscapable of controlling the Camera 4-6 in order to take an image of ashape and includes Image Recognition software capable of recognizingwhich shape is portrayed in a certain image. For this purpose, theScanning and Image Recognition Mobile Application 6-1 compares the shapecaptured in the image taken by the Camera 4-6 with shapes in the ShapeDatabase 6-2 and identifies a specific shape. Then, using theShape-Position Database 6-3, it associates the identified shape with aKnown Position in the plurality of Known Positions 5-3. It thendetermines the position of the Mobile Device 1-1 as the identified KnownPosition. The Mobile Device 1-1 also includes an Assisted GPS Receiver4-8, a GPS Receiver 2-4, a Wi-Fi Radio 4-10, and a Cellular Radio 4-11,and may be capable to determine its position using other positioningsystems such as Assisted GPS or Wi-Fi-Based Positioning.

FIG. 7 illustrates the operation of the Position Identification Solutionin accordance with another embodiment of one of the current inventions.A plurality of Known Positions is defined in the area where the MobileDevice position needs to be determined. The plurality of Known Positionsincludes a first Position 1 7-4, a second Position 2 7-5, and a thirdPosition 3 7-6. A first Shape 1 7-1 is placed at Position 1 7-4, asecond Shape 2 7-2, different from Shape 1 7-1, is placed at Position 27-5, and a third Shape 3 7-3, different from both Shape 1 7-1 and Shape2 7-2, is placed at Position 3 7-6. The Shape Database 6-2 in the MobileDevice 1-1 is loaded with information describing all the shapesassociated with all positions. For example, a first Shape 1 DB Entry 7-7is created in the database describing Shape 1 7-1, a second entry Shape2 DB Entry 7-8 is created in the database describing Shape 2 7-2, and athird entry Shape 3 DB Entry 7-9 is created in the database describingShape 3 7-3. The Shape-Position Database 6-3 in the Mobile Device 1-1 isloaded with information describing the association of each given shapewith a known position. For example, a first entry Shape 1-Position 17-10 describes the fact that Shape 1 7-1 is associated with Position 17-4 and is created in the Shape-Position Database 6-3, a second entryShape 2-Position 2 7-11 describes the fact that Shape 2 7-2 isassociated with Position 2 7-5 and is created in the Shape-PositionDatabase 6-3, and a third entry Shape 3-Position 3 7-12 describes thefact that Shape 3 7-3 is associated with Position 3 7-6 and is createdin the Shape-Position Database 6-3.

The Mobile Device 1-1 captures an image of a shape using the Camera 4-6.The Scanning and Image Recognition Mobile Application 6-1 processes theimage and associates it with one of the entries in the Shape Database6-2, defining which shape has been captured by the camera 4-6. Then, theknown position associated with the recognized shape is determined fromthe corresponding entry in the Shape-Position Database 6-3. The positionof the Mobile Device 1-1 is computed as the determined position. This isfurther illustrated with an example. The Camera 4-6 takes an image ofShape 2, which in this example is a square shape. The Scanning and ImageRecognition Mobile Application 6-1 running on an Operating System 4-12compares the shape with the shape described in each entry of the ShapeDatabase 6-2 and matches it with Shape 2 using the Shape 2 DB Entry 7-8.Then, the Shape-Position Database 6-3 associates Shape 2 with Position 2by using the entry Shape 2-Position 2 7-11. Finally, the position of theMobile Device 1-1 is computed as equal to Position 2.

FIG. 8 shows the operation of the Position Identification Solutionaccording to a second embodiment of the present invention, which uses aMobile Device 1-1 including a Scanning and Image Recognition MobileApplication 6-1 running on an Operating System 4-12, a Camera 4-6, and aShape Database 6-2. The Mobile Device 1-1 is connected to the WirelessNetwork 8-2, which in turn is connected to the Internet 2-8. TheWireless Network may use standards such as cellular phone systems,Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, and WiMAX Mobile Devices. Some of the components thatuse these standards may include cellular phones, smartphones like theiPhone™, Android™, Windows™, and Blackberry™, tablets, and wearabledevices. A Positioning Server 8-1 is connected to the Internet 2-8. TheMobile Device 1-1 is capable of communicating with the PositioningServer 8-1. The Positioning Server 8-1 includes a Shape-PositionDatabase 6-3 containing a plurality of Shape-Position entries,comprising a first entry Shape 1-Position 1 7-10, a second entry Shape2-Position 2 7-11, and a Shape 3-Position 3 7-12. For each position andeach associated shape, there is a corresponding entry in theShape-Position Database 6-3. The Scanning and Image Recognition MobileApplication 6-1 takes an image of a shape and determines which shape itpossesses. The Mobile Device 1-1 sends the information of the shape tothe Positioning Server 8-1. The Positioning Server 8-1 uses the receivedinformation to identify the corresponding entry in the Shape-PositionDatabase 6-3 and derive an associated position. Then, the PositioningServer 8-1 determines the position of the Mobile Device 1-1 as equal tothe derived associated position of the captured shape.

FIG. 9 illustrates the operation of one of the embodiments of thecurrent invention according to a third embodiment of the currentinvention. In this case, the Position Identification Solution usescolors instead of shapes and associates a color with each position inthe plurality of positions. A plurality of Known Positions is defined inthe area where the Mobile Device position needs to be determined. Theplurality of Known Positions includes a first Position 1 7-4, a secondPosition 2 7-5, and a third Position 3 7-6. A first Color 1 9-1 isplaced at Position 1 7-4, a second Color 2 9-2, different from Color 19-1, is placed at Position 2 7-5, and a third Color 3 9-3, differentfrom both Color 1 9-1 and Color 2 9-2, is placed at Position 3 7-6. TheColor Database 9-4 in the Mobile Device 1-1 is loaded with informationdescribing all the colors associated with all positions. For example, afirst Color 1 DB Entry 9-7 is created in the database describing Color 19-1, a second entry Color 2 DB Entry 9-8 is created in the databasedescribing Shape 2 9-2, and a third entry Shape 3 DB Entry 9-9 iscreated in the database describing Shape 3 9-3. The Color-PositionDatabase 9-5 in the Mobile Device 1-1 is loaded with informationdescribing the association of each given color with a known position.For example, a first entry Color 1-Position 1 9-10 describes the factthat Color 1 9-1 is associated with Position 1 7-4 and is created in theColor-Position Database 9-5, a second entry Color 2-Position 2 9-11describes the fact that Color 2 9-2 is associated with Position 2 7-5and is created in the Color-Position Database 9-5, and a third entryColor 3-Position 3 9-12 describes the fact that Color 3 9-3 isassociated with Position 3 7-6 and is created in the Color-PositionDatabase 9-5. The Color-Position Database may be located in aPositioning Server.

The Mobile Device 1-1 captures an image of a color using the Camera 4-6.The Scanning and Image Recognition Mobile Application 6-1 running on anOperating System 4-12 processes the image captured by the camera 4-6then associates it with one of the entries in the Color Database 9-4,defining which color has been captured by the camera. Then, the knownposition associated with the recognized color is determined from thecorresponding entry in the Color-Position Database 9-5. The position ofthe Mobile Device 1-1 is computed as the determined position. This isfurther illustrated with an example. The Camera 4-6 takes an image ofColor 2. The Scanning and Image Recognition Mobile Application 6-1compares the color with the color described in each entry of the ColorDatabase 9-4 and matches it with Color 2 using the Color 2 DB Entry 9-8.Then, the Color-Position Database 9-5 associates Color 2 with Position 2by using the entry Color 2-Position 2 9-11. Finally, the position of theMobile Device 1-1 is computed as equal to Position 2.

According to another embodiment of the one of the current inventions,the Position Identification Solution uses combinations of shapes andcolors to associate with each known position in the plurality of KnownPositions 5-3. For example, the Position Identification Solutionassociates a first shape of a first color with a first known position inthe plurality of Known Positions 5-3, a first shape of a second colorwith a second known position in the plurality of Known Positions 5-3, asecond shape of a first color with a third known position in theplurality of Known Positions 5-3, a second shape of a second color witha fourth known position in the plurality of Known Positions 5-3, and soon. In this embodiment of the invention, the Scanning an ImageRecognition Mobile Application is capable of recognizing a specificshape of a specific color in the plurality of shape and colorcombinations that are associated with the known positions in theplurality of Known Position 5-3. Once the shape and color combination isrecognized, the position of the Mobile Device 1-1 is determined as equalto the known position associated with the recognized shape and colorcombination.

FIG. 10 illustrates another embodiment of one of the present inventionswhich is used together with other positioning mechanisms as part of aHybrid Positioning System. The current embodiment of the invention canbe used as part of a Hybrid Positioning System in different ways. Afirst way the current embodiment of the invention can be used as part ofa Hybrid Positioning System is by using the current embodiment of theinvention to determine a known position and use such a determinedposition to calibrate a position computed using a second positioningsystem, such as Assisted GPS or Wi-Fi-Based Positioning from the sameposition. The Mobile Device 1-1 includes a Camera 4-6 and a ScanningImage Recognition Mobile Application 6-1 running on an Operating System4-12. The Scanning Image Recognition Mobile Application 6-1 is capableof recognizing at least one of a shape, a color, or shape-colorcombination using a Shape Database 6-2, a Shape-Position Database 6-3, aColor Database 9-4, or a Color-Position Database 9-5. The Mobile Device6-1 also includes a Cellular Radio 4-11 with which it attaches to theWireless Network 8-2, which is in turn attached to the Internet 2-8. TheMobile Device 6-1 also includes at least one of a GPS Receiver 2-4, anAssisted GPS Receiver 4-8, and a Wi-Fi Radio 4-10. If the Mobile Device1-1 includes a GPS Receiver 2-4, the Mobile Device 1-1 is capable ofcomputing its position using GPS, if the Mobile Device 1-1 includes anAssisted GPS Receiver 4-8, the Mobile Device 1-1 is capable of computingits position using Assisted GPS, and if the Mobile Device 1-1 includes aWi-Fi Radio 4-10, the Mobile Device 1-1 is capable of computing itsposition using Wi-Fi-Based Positioning Systems. The Mobile Device 1-1may also include capabilities of computing its position using otherpositioning systems. A Hybrid Positioning System Server 10-1 can beattached to the Internet 2-8.

The Mobile Device 1-1 computes its position using the an embodiment ofthe invention, thus generating a first Position Data, and also computesits position using a different positioning system, such as GPS, AssistedGPS, or Wi-Fi-Positioning, while in the same position used to generatethe first Position Data, thus generating a second Position Data. TheMobile Device 1-1 then sends both the first computed Position Data andthe second computed Position Data to the Hybrid Positioning SystemServer 10-1 through the Cellular Network 2-7 and the Internet 2-8. TheHybrid Positioning System Server uses the first Position Data tocalibrate the second Position Data.

A second way the an embodiment of the invention can be used as part of aHybrid Positioning System is to use the an embodiment of the inventionto compute the position of the Mobile Device 1-1 in certain locationsand a second positioning system to compute the position of the MobileDevice 1-1 in locations where the an embodiment of the invention may notbe used to compute the position of the Mobile Device 1-1. Experts in thefield can easily devise additional ways to use the embodiment of theinvention in a Hybrid Positioning System, as well as ways to use the anembodiment of the invention together with more than one otherpositioning system in a Hybrid Positioning System.

The attribute database 10-2 comprises the shape database 6-2 and colordatabase 9-4. The attribute database 10-2 comprises the descriptions ofobjects, colors, shapes, sounds, etc. The attribute database outputsonly one description of a known attribute whenever a description of anunknown attribute is provided as input to the attribute database whichis searched therein and generates a match within the database. Theobjects and shapes can be in various orientations with respect to ahorizontal plane. The colors can be in various shades and the sounds canhave various amplitudes and frequencies. The attribute-position database10-3 comprises the shape-position database 6-2 and color-positiondatabase 9-5, and a sound-position database (not illustrated). Theattribute-position database 10-3 provides the corresponding positiononce the attribute has been matched and identified.

Finally, it is understood that the above descriptions are onlyillustrative of the principle of the various embodiments of theinvention. Various alterations, improvements, and modifications willoccur and are intended to be suggested hereby, and are within the spiritand scope of the various embodiments of the invention. This variousembodiments of the invention can, however, be embodied in many differentforms and should not be construed as limited to the embodiments setforth herein. Rather, these embodiments are provided so that thedisclosure will be thorough and complete, and will fully convey thescope of the various embodiments of the invention to those skilled inthe arts. It is understood that the various embodiments of theinvention, although different, are not mutually exclusive. In accordancewith these principles, those skilled in the art can devise numerousmodifications without departing from the spirit and scope of theinvention.

What is claimed is:
 1. A mobile device coupled to a positionidentification system comprising: an operating system coupled to acamera; a scanning and image recognition unit coupled to the operatingsystem; an attribute database coupled to the scanning and imagerecognition unit; an attribute-position database coupled to the scanningand image recognition unit; each of a plurality of descriptions in theattribute database describing a corresponding attribute; and each entryin the attribute-position database associating an attribute with acorresponding position, wherein an image obtained by the cameracontaining a first attribute is coupled to the scanning and imagerecognition unit which matches a description of a first attribute to oneof the plurality of descriptions in the attribute database, wherein thatmatched description of one of the plurality of descriptions is enteredto the attribute-position database to find a position of the firstattribute.
 2. The mobile device of claim 1, further comprising: awireless network coupled to either a hybrid positioning system server oran Internet, wherein the mobile device receives data from and sends datato the wireless network, and the data comprises attribute descriptions,corresponding positions or both.
 3. The mobile device of claim 1,wherein the scanning and image recognition unit comprises a mobileapplication.
 4. The mobile device of claim 1, wherein another positiondetermined by a second positioning system is enhanced by the position ofthe first attribute.
 5. The mobile device of claim 1, wherein a deviceposition of the mobile device is defined as being equivalent to theposition of the first attribute.
 6. The mobile device of claim 1,wherein the attribute database contains descriptions of orientations,objects, shapes, colors, shades, sounds, amplitude, frequencies or anycombination therein.
 7. The mobile device of claim 1, wherein thedescriptions in the attribute database corresponds to a plurality ofdescriptions of attributes which is each stored with a known position ina corresponding entry in the attribute-position database.
 8. A positionidentification unit apparatus comprising: a mobile device having anoperating system coupled to a camera; a scanning and image recognitionunit coupled to the operating system, wherein the scanning and imagerecognition unit receives an image from the camera; an attributedatabase with a plurality of first descriptions describing eachattribute; at least one server with an attribute-position databaseassociating a description of each attribute with a known position; thescanning and image recognition unit extracts a description of an unknownattribute within the image and couples the description of the unknownattribute to the attribute database matching one of the plurality offirst descriptions to provide a description of a known attribute; aninternet coupling a cellular network to the at least one server; whereinthe description of the known attribute is sent to the at least oneserver and is matched with a description of one of a plurality ofattributes in the attribute-position database to provide a knownposition; wherein the mobile device receives the known position of theattribute from the server.
 9. The apparatus of claim 8, wherein a deviceposition of the mobile device is defined as being equivalent to theknown position.
 10. The apparatus of claim 8, further comprising: asecond position determined by a second positioning system enhanced bythe known position.
 11. The apparatus of claim 8, wherein thedescriptions in the attribute database corresponds to a plurality ofdescriptions of attributes which is each stored with a position in acorresponding entry in the attribute-position database.
 12. Theapparatus of claim 8, wherein the attribute database containsdescriptions of orientations, objects, shapes, colors, shades, sounds,amplitude, frequencies or any combination therein.
 13. The apparatus ofclaim 8, wherein the scanning and image recognition unit comprises amobile application.
 14. A method of determining a position of anattribute comprising the steps of: taking an image containing anattribute with a camera of a mobile device; receiving data from anattribute database and an attribute-position database in the mobiledevice; storing the data into the mobile device into a stored attributedatabase and a corresponding stored attribute-position database,respectively; recognizing a description of the attribute in the imagetaken by the camera using a scanning and image recognition unit;matching the description of the attribute to a description of a storedattribute in the stored attribute database; and associating thedescription of the stored attribute in the stored attribute-positiondatabase to a position.
 15. The process of claim 14, further comprisingthe steps of: locating a description of another attribute in a differentimage taken in a different position; matching the description of anotherattribute to a description of a corresponding attribute in the storedattribute database; and associating the description of the correspondingattribute in the stored attribute-position database to another position.16. The process of claim 14, further comprising the steps of: coupling awireless network to either a hybrid positioning system server or anInternet, wherein the mobile device receives data from and sends data tothe wireless network.
 17. The process of claim 14, wherein a systemposition determined by a second positioning system is enhanced by eitherthe position or the another position.
 18. The process of claim 14,wherein a device position of the mobile device is defined as beingequivalent to the position.
 19. The process of claim 14, wherein theattribute database contains descriptions of orientations, objects,shapes, colors, shades, sounds, amplitude, frequencies or anycombination therein.
 20. The process of claim 14, wherein thedescriptions in the attribute database corresponds to a plurality ofdescriptions of attributes which is each stored with a known position ina corresponding entry in the attribute-position database.